Educational apparatus



, i 1,416,671- J. S. CRATE EDUCATIONAL APPARATUS Filed Dec. 28 1921 /7 lelMP- et? E wir.

' /N VEN TUR d Ceiff (CURRENT EVENTS WEEKLY Spmm WITNESS@ Dec. 4 1923.

farro/Mrs flic Poema mag-'1, 1923.

. JAMES snanLE CRATE, or4 Hons'rziulrz 'r EDUGATIONAL APPARATUS.

i. Application nled December 28, 1921; Serial No. 525,372.

To all whom t may concern a Be it known that I, JAMES SEARLE CRATE, acitizen of the United Stateaand a resident 'of Houston, in the county ofHarris l and StateV of Texas, have invented' a new and ImprovedEducational Apparatus, of which the following is a full, clear, andexact description.A l This invention relates to improvements 1n.l

educational apparatus,: particularly to an appvratus for teachingcurrent events.`

e principal object of the invention is to providean apparatus of thischaracter, which will materially assist students to vis-v uali-ze thegeographic locations of the placesh yof occurrencev of events ofnationalV or international importance 'or interest. l This visualizationof the locationof the happen-` y ings'of the day will `serve to make alasti impression upon lthe mind ,of the student.. It is to' be noted,however, at the outset, that the apparatus is not limited to thisparticu' lar use, but will prove equally efficacious in teachinghistory, Sunday school lessons, as an educational game and' for any usein 'which facts and data are to ybe referred to given localities.

lWith these and other objects in view, the invention-consists in certainnovel features of construction and combinations and arrangements ofparts'as will be .more fully hereinafter described and pointed out inthe lclaims.

The accompanying drawing is a perspec tive view of my improvededucational ap-V paratus. l

Referring in detail to the drawing, I have shown'a shallow box 1,divided by 'a partition 2 into an' upper and lower compartment.sub-divided by a partition 3 into a. relatively large and a relativelysmall compartment.

The invention in .this case does not consist in the4 particularconstruction of the box, since a backing board or other support wouldserve the same purpose and in fact the apparatus might be used withoutany support at all. In the upper compartment of the lbox there is a setof maps 4, preferably mounted upon ring hinges 5 secured to the box.These maps are all numbered, as indicated at 6, on the upper map.` Anysuitable set of maps may be used in accordance with the subject to betaught and in the,

particular embodimentv of the invention The lower compartment isfurther` shown, I prefer to use sets of mapsl showing all of thecountries of the worldl for the purpose of teaching current events.'Referring particularly tothe uppermost map, which happens to be theUnited States,

it will be seen that suitable-guide letters 7 are provided along itsupper and lower edge, and suitable guide numbers 8 along its side ed swhich cooperate with the let-` ters tofacl 'tate and expedite thefinding of any ygiven localit on the map. In the larger of the two owercompartments there are provided news sheets 9ha`ving displayed thereon acondensed reviewsA of current events. This news sheet is preferablydividedlintov numbered columns, the columns Vbeing numbered, asindicated at 10, and each column is under thev heading of one of theimportant events. of the week or month in accordance with .the periodsat which the newsv sheets may-be published.

At thebottom of each column upon the news sheet, a map number` such 'as11, is displayed. These map. numbers refer to the maps of the set in theupper compartment of the boxand in addition' to the Inapnumbers, asuitable index or guide, such as 12 are is displayed. This guideconsists on one of l the guide letters and one of the guide numbersofthe map referred to and assists-the student in 4locating theparticular place on the map at which the happening' described in thecolumn occurred.

The smaller'of the lower compartments of the box 1 forms a suitablecontainer for marking devices, such as 13. These marking devices, whichfor the sake of convenience, are shown in the form of thumb tacks arenumbered, the numbers on .the markers corresponding to the numbers onthe news columns.

The manner of use of the apparatus is as follows: When any articularevent which may be reviewed :in t e news sheet is under discussion, theteacher or student turns to the map indicated ai'. the bottom of thecolumn in the news sheet, takes the marker corresponding to the numberof the column and places the same in the proper position upon the map,thereby causing visualization of the geographic location of theoccurrence or happening-under discussion.

The foregoing description is merely indicative of one use to which theapparatus might be put. It will be readily apparent that the inventionconsists principally of the novel combination of parts used informingtheapparaftus and not in the partie-1 ular way in which the sameis supported or dis layed. lthough l haye illustrated Aone of thepreferred embodiments of my invention, it will be obvious that variousslight changes and alterations might be made in 4the. gen- .eral formand larrangement of the parts denumbering of thereferences adapted toin` dicate on the map the loci mentioned' in the references. y

2; In an educational apparatus, a map,'a

l numbered series of references and data re- -ferring to loci appearingon said map, a set o f `markers numbered '.-in laccordance `with thenumbering of the :references anddata adapted to indicate on the matheloci-imentionedv in vthe references, sai" map having guide charactersaround its edge, and said IVae references and data on indices to saidmap in the terms of said guide characters.

3. In an educational apparatus, a numbered set of maps having guidecharacters displayed thereon, a num eredseries of references referringerences designating the ma `'number and guide characters nearest sailoci referred to, and a set of markers numbered in accordance with thenumbering of the referbered subdivisions, matter displayed in saidsubdivisions and referring to loci on'said having displayed theretovarious loci shown on said maps, indlces associated with the refthecolumns.

ences and adapted (to indicate on the inap-- the loci mentioned.

4. ln an educational apparatus, a map, a sheet ruled to provide aplurality of numniap, and markers numbered in laccordance with thenumbering of said subdivisions and adapted to indicate-on themap theloci referred to. l

sheet ruled to provide a plurality of numbered subdivisions, facts anddata displayed oci `in said subdivisions and referring to on said map,markers numbered in accord-l visions and adapted'to indicateon the mapthe loci referred to,l and indices-to said-map displayed in saidsubdivisions to facilitate the placing of said markers.4

a map having in its margin guide. acters to facilitate findingany given'locality thereon, a sheet providedwith numbered columns designed to havecurrent characters of the niap, andfa pluralthe numbers lcorrecolumns.

guide ity of numbermarkers, sponding to the numbers of the of aplurality of numbered maps eachghaving'on its marginguide characters to.acilitate inding any given locality thereon, a pluralityof sheets eachhaving a'plurality of numbered columns designed tohave curvrent eventsrecorded therein, the columns lziearing respectively corresponding mapnumbers and having guide characters corresponding to the guidecharacters' of the Si;

maps, and a plurality of markers having numbers corresponding to thenumbers of Jas. ksiiaann CRATE.

. 5. In an educational apparatus, a map, a

ance with the numbering of the said subdi- @E (S.` An educationalapparatus, compr iling c ,M

p events recorded therein, each vcolumn hav ing guidecharacterscorresponding. to the 7. An educational apparatus, consisting4

